Hydraulic ball press with automatic ball feed



HYDRAULIC BALL PRESS WITH AUTOMATIC BALL FEED Filed Aug. 24, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 lsp INVENTORS W George Ger/00h Robert E. Ma Kinlay BY wfiam ATTORNEY 9, 1962 R. E. M =K|NLEY ETAL 3,057,131

HYDRAULIC BALL PRESS WITH AUTOMATIC BALL FEED Filed Aug. 24; 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 2kg 4/, :23

PM 3 5 F192 I g 35 I 5 39 4a 33 3 I W! INVENTORS George Ger/ash Robert E. Mc/(m/ey ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,057,131 HYDRAUUQ BALL PRES WlTll-l AUTGMATEC BALL FEED Robert E. McKinley, Glenbrook, and George Gerlach, Norwallr, Conn, assignors to the United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Army Filed Aug. 24, 1960, Ser. No. 51,757 2 (Jlaims. (Cl. 5388) The invention described herein may be manufactured and used by or for the Government of the United States of America for governmental purposes without the payment to us of any royalty thereon.

This invention relates to a sealing machine of the type which automatically fills and seals containers by way of pressing a hardened steel ball into the filling orifice of the container. The main object of the invention is to provide a sealing machine with a filling head or anvil of the type wherein the filling, sealing, and feeding of the steel balls is done automatically.

Another object is to provide a machine of the kind mentioned capable of operating with certainty and efiiciency and having a large output and designed so that it is relatively simple in construction and embracing a minimum number of parts.

In the drawing, FIG. 1 is a sectional view of the pressing machine shown at the beginning stage with diagrammatically shown container and hydraulic ram. FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the pressing machine shown at the sealing stage with diagrammatically shown container and hydraulic ram.

The pressing machine, ordinarily made of metal, embodies a conical anvil support 1 which is rigidly fastened to a suitable frame (not shown). The support 1 at the lower edge has suspended from it by means of four tie rods (only two, 3 and 5 are shown), a cylindrical anvil housing 7. The anvil housing is slidea-bly mounted on an anvil shaft 9. Said shaft is fastened at the top to the support 1 by a bolt 11. The anvil shaft 9 at the mid point has a gasket 13 and at the bottom a spherical indentation 15. Each of the four tie rods holding the anvil housing 7 are surrounded by compression springs 17 and 19 (only the two mentioned are shown). The springs at the upper stage are mounted inside of the anvil support 1, while the tie rods slidingly protrude through the top surface of the latter having on their ends self-locking nuts 21 and 23. At the lower portion, the tie rods are firmly secured to the anvil housing 7, the springs having their lower ends sunk in relatively deep wells in said housing. Surrounding the shaft 9, at the top of the anvil housing, there is a seal 25, and below it, lubricant well 27, rubber ring 29 and a rubber washer 31, respectively. On the outer side, the anvil housing has a limit micro switch 33, arcuate groove 35, inlet tube 37 and a ball receiving opening 39. The opening 39 receives ball 41 that has been brought to this point by the tube 43 which is held by a support bracket 45.

The container sealing cycle begins with the steel ball 41 being held in readiness by the anvil housing rubber ring 29 below the stationary anvil shaft 9, and with the container 47 being raised by the hydraulic ram 49. As the 3,057,13 l C Patented Oct. 9, 1962 container 47 by way of the ram 49 reaches the anvil housing 7, it creates a seal with the rubber washer 31. The container will continue to rise upward until the ball 41 comes in contact with the anvil shaft 9 forming a seal with the anvil housing ring 29. At this point an inert gas in forced at a predetermined pressure through the inlet tube 37 into the container 47. When this operation is icompleted, the ram 49 with the container 47 continues to rise until the ball 41 in contact and cradled in the indentation 15 of the shaft 9 is forced into the filling orifice 51, thus forming a permanent seal. A high limit switch 53 in the hydraulic line actuated by the micro switch 33 contacting a suitably positioned stop (not shown) determines the end of the pressing operation. The automatic feeding of the ball takes place with the anvil housing in the uppermost position. At this point the opening 39 will receive a ball that has been brought to this point by the tube 43 which is feeding the balls into the anvil housing by gravity. The ball remains in the opening 39 until the hydraulic ram 49 lowers the container 47. The latters downward action will simultaneously lower, by means of the springs around the tie rods, the anvil housing 7. This action will clear the opening 39 allowing the ball 41 to drop onto the anvil housing ring 29 where it i temporarily retained in readiness for the next operation.

Although our invention has been described in connection with specific details of the embodiments thereof, it must be understood that it is not intended to be limited thereto except in so far as set forth in the accompanying claims.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A sealing machine of the character described having an anvil support, an anvil shaft attached thereto and a hardened steel ball feeding means, said anvil shaft having at its bottom a spherical indentation, a slideable anvil housing suspended by four tie rods, said tie rods being surrounded by compression springs, said anvil housing having a limit switch to limit the upward movement of said housing, said housing having a passageway through one side thereof adapted to admit balls to the center of said housing upon upward movement of the housing past said ball feeding means.

2. An anvil housing for use in a ball sealing machine vvwhich comprises a cylindrical body having a central bore adapted to slide on an anvil in sealed relationship, said housing having a lengthwise arcuate groove on the outside thereof, ending in a transverse hole which communicates with the central bore at an acute angle relative to the center line of said body.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 234,674 Ingersoll et al Nov. 23, 1880 1,196,578 Norton Aug. 29, 1916 2,059,931 Cate Nov. 3, 1936 2,101,156 Payne Dec. 7, 1937 2,198,752 Barr Apr. 30, 1940 

